SI Readers Cancel Subscriptions En Masse Over 'Ghetto' Swimsuit Issue

Outraged Sports Illustrated readers are flooding the SI offices with angry phone calls and emails demanding subscription cancellations. The furor erupted after Sports Illustrated's celebrated annual "Swimsuit Issue" hit the stands with Beyonce on the cover and an inside shot of a smug Kanye West gripping a models derriere.
Angry comments have been posted as well as other blogs and message boards. "Is this the Swimsuit Issue or the Ghetto issue?" read one post. A source inside the SI mail room emailed me to say longtime subscribers are angry. "The calls are nonstop," she wrote. "Some of these guys have been subscribing to Sports Illustrated for years just so they can get the Swimsuit Issue before it hits the stands. This is like blasphemy to most of them who don't know who Beyonce or Kanye are."

A local newspaper reporter who asked not to be identified said, "So many women grew up identifying with the models in the Swimsuit Issue. They don't see themselves in Beyonce. SI has made a mockery of their core demographic with this issue."

So far, SI hasn't commented publicly on the complaints. But insiders say SI is discreetly emailing members of the mainstream media emphasizing the point that the Swimsuit Issue is a "Music Issue". But critics are asking how can it be both? "They should make up their minds," wrote one angry poster on a sports-related board. "Either it's the Swimsuit Issue or the Rap Issue. SI can cancel my subscription!" http://gossip.commongate.com/post/Sports_Illustrated_readers_CANCEL_Beyonce_Knowles_Ghetto_Issue_subscriptions

I call bullshit. Why would a bunch of under-25 guys wanting to ogle scantily clad women be outraged over Beyonce in a bikini and Kanye West? Why would the over-25 guys who are ogling care, either? Prurience trumps bigotry, I would think.

I call B.S. as well. First of all, an inside source in the mail room? Talk about bottom of the barrel. Second, readers are complaining because they don't know who Beyonce is? Sorry, that's stretching the bounds of credibility there, D_B.

If nothing else, I look forward to your posts because it's so enjoyable watching other members blast you.

A local newspaper reporter who asked not to be identified said, "So many women grew up identifying with the models in the Swimsuit Issue. They don't see themselves in Beyonce. SI has made a mockery of their core demographic with this issue."

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I find this very hard to believe. Did that many women more really identify with Cindy Crawford? Elle McPherson? Kathy Ireland? Tyra Banks?